ROSETTA Launch.

ESA’s Rosetta spacecraft was successfully launched on board an Ariane-5 launcher from the European Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana on 2nd March 2004 at 07:17 a.m. GMT. Rosetta is the first spacecraft to undertake the long-term exploration of a comet at close quarters.

After entering orbit around Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, in May 2014, the spacecraft will release a small Lander in November 2014 onto the icy surface of the comet’s nucleus. Rosetta intends to orbit the comet for about a year as it heads towards the Sun. Once it has passed its perihelion (the closest distance to the Sun), Rosetta will continue to orbit the comet for another half year.

Images courtesy of ESA

Rosetta is one of the most challenging missions ever - many of the complex navigation and landing manoeuvres need to take place automatically with absolutely no room for error. Instructions from the ground take up to 50 minutes to reach the spacecraft, so Rosetta must have the 'intelligence' to look after itself. It uses sophisticated on-board computers and software whose tasks include data management, attitude, and orbit control.

Since March 1999, an Irish software development company, CAPTEC in Malahide has been working on Rosetta. It developed the Electronic Support System software for the Lander interface with the satellite and performed the Independent Verification and Validation of the Rosetta On-board Software. Its customer, EADS Astrium GmbH, is the Prime Contractor for this European Space Agency mission. The final independent Software Validation tests were conducted in late 2003, and final Test Reports were delivered in December 2003.

The company was selected in competitive bidding for these projects and has established a successful track record in developing high reliability on-board software for the ESA satellite programme. Notable space satellite missions operating with CAPTEC software include, Hipparcos, ISO, SOHO, Huygens Probe and XMM.

A spin-off from the technology and process in these projects is the high performance and reliability of the CAPTEC Imaging products for Lossless Compression and Medical Applications.

©2004 CAPTEC
Computer Applied Techniques Ltd.